Wax recommendations please

[reflexboy]

I have an Obsidian black car and love a wet look shine, which feels slick on the back of my hand and smooth as a baby's b@m.
I've done the whole wash, clay, DA, SRP thing and up to now have always topped it off with AG HD Wax, which I really like, but my pot of HD is now almost empty and need to replace it.

I've heard great things about Carnuaba wax, Colinite 476 and now Killer Wax, but which one would suit me best for a wet look, super smooth feeling finish? Or any other brands for that matter?

Although not all are waxes, I've tried Poorboys Black Hole, Nattys Paste Wax and Jetseal 109-none of which, contrary to reviews, I find much cop at all. Any suggestions?

 

[wu56Shoozz]

I have a Carbon Black Van and for best results I've found a mixture of product works... I start by using Zymol polish/wax cleanser, for some reason Merc paint I found responds to this, then a coating of either Harleys Wax or Meguiars Gold Carnuba Wax as I found Harleys more difficult to remove so it depends on the day as Harleys has a greater Carnuba content.. and then finish off with Black edge detailer and my results are so good that I can see the slab lines, weeds and insects on my veranda off the panels, my rear door comes up amazing despite need painted

Photo by David Morton

 

[Pondman]

Bilt and Hamber Double speed wax!
Works for me with Tenorite Grey, which is pretty dark. Easy-on, easy off! Just the way we like it
There are loads of really good product out there now, take the plunge and try a few. It’s a good excuse for exercise and being outside

 

[chrisk2010]

+1 for double speed wax it's becoming one of my favorites.

I washed, polished, glazed and waxed three cars Saturday and the Double speed wax does make life easier.

 

[ioweddie]

Harley's once a month with sonax in between

 

[Toobad]

Aaah, Obsidian Black - not so much a colour as an OCD! You obviously realise the WOW factor requires perfectly corrected paint and you have been down this road before with the whole clay/DA/glaze process. To take all this effort to the next level you could try topping off with Dodo Juice Black Widow. It contains a blend of carnauba and montan waxes with just a dash of sealant to promote longevity. With perfect underlying paint you will get a retina-searing gloss and immense flake pop. It can be had on Amazon UK for under £30. Here's a post about it from detailing legend Mike Phillips:

Mike Phillips Reviews Dodo Juice Black Widow Wax - LIMITED EDITION! - Detailing World

 

[chrisk2010]

Aaah, Obsidian Black - not so much a colour as an OCD!

You hit the nail on the head there ! I spent hours washing, claying, glazing, waxing and tooth brushing the exhaust and many of the cars other nooks and crannies the weekend only to see a fine layer of dust over it now !

The bad thing is I want to washing and dry it again !

On another note i am at the last of the double speed wax and dodo juice is my next purchase can't wait to clean some more !

I think i am developing a nervous twitch .......

 

[Pondman]

I had a black metallic/mica Subaru Forester STi once!
I swore never again would I have another black car - as you know absolutely fabulous for one day only!

 

[JimGreen]

Although I have a white C63, i've tried both DoDo Juice & Bilt Hamber Double Speed Wax and find them both equally better than most wax's on the market, I don't think you'd go wrong with either of them. Having being an avid Autoglym HD user, along with most of their other products for many years, I'm now leaning towards Bilt Hamber for alot of my detailing items.

White is a hard colour to get that "Wet Finish" but both Bilt Hamber & DoDo Juice give a great finish. Bilt Hamber have been receiving some very good comments on various detailing web sites and recently won some awards..... Google is your friend : Car Magazine Awards - Bilt Hamber

 

[BfgSLKMan]

Personally I can't recommend GTechniq enough. Even if you don't do the whole paint correction thing first, their Nano Wax is just great. You can apply with their sponge aswell as a machine and then seal with a variety of coatings (Exo). They also have full professional only stuff. I did our Merc about 3 years ago - self corrected the paint; hard work as it has the Merc Ceramic coating to stop swirl marks (IMHO it doesn't, but just makes polishing a ****) but did it and applied their Nano Wax and Seal. Proper mirror like finish, and when you wash (hand mit) and hose off with a steam of water you are left with a 20 drops on the whole car to Micro fibre dry.

I have no connection with them (other than an extremely satisfied customer), but their stuff really does make the car shine and makes it so much easier to clean

 

[Toobad]

I spent hours washing, claying, glazing, waxing and tooth brushing the exhaust and many of the cars other nooks and crannies the weekend only to see a fine layer of dust over it now !

Just a quick ride on the off-topic train - you could use FinishKare 425 as a drying aid/quick detailer in your war against dust. Apart from leaving the surface slicker than Slickity McSlickface, FK 425 has extraordinary anti-static properties which actively repels dust particles. A 50:50 across your bonnet will show the stuff in action.

FinishKare #425 - Ultra Slick Polywipe - Clean Your Car

 

[reflexboy]

Thanks for all the replies and advice. I’ve decided to give AG UHD wax a try as I used to use the HD wax and liked it. The UHD stuff is meant to be even better although quite pricey. We’ll see.
Never buying a black car again

 

[clk320x]

local £5 car wash get it nice and shiny.. (just joking)

Bilt-Hamber Double Speed-Wax is what I use.

 

[chrisk2010]

Just a quick ride on the off-topic train - you could use FinishKare 425 as a drying aid/quick detailer in your war against dust. Apart from leaving the surface slicker than Slickity McSlickface, FK 425 has extraordinary anti-static properties which actively repels dust particles. A 50:50 across your bonnet will show the stuff in action.

FinishKare #425 - Ultra Slick Polywipe - Clean Your Car

Thanks Toobad but I am far to scared to use a quick detailer for fear of fine scratches. I have Megs Ultimate detailer i used once the following day of an intensive wash, clay and wax when i first purchased the car and i have one fine very annoying 12" scratch on the bonnet no one notices it but i know it's there lol. It will come out when i have time to machine polish in the warmer months but since then it has really put me off.

I think they are quite handy after washing for a quick waterspot remover though.

 

[markwibbs]

'Harley's once a month with sonax in between'

Not having a pop at the poster above, who may very well like doing the car every 2 weeks, but I would rather be driving it !

There are some brilliant wax products that will last for months, up to 6 months, dont cost the earth and save you so much time with no diminution of finish or extra elbow grease requirements. Yes, Ceramics will last longest but they are largely out of the scope of the DIYist and require a near-perfect finish before application, which is again out of the scope of this threads objectives. That's whether you pay fora pro to it or do it yourself, which is possible now with newer products like the Race Glaze 9H.

Things have moved on such that a little investment in a better wax and you'll simply not have to attend to the car as often. I've got a small fleet to look after and work on the principle of putting a price on my time and spending a little more on a better product.

 

[chrisk2010]

'Harley's once a month with sonax in between'

Not having a pop at the poster above, who may very well like doing the car every 2 weeks, but I would rather be driving it !

There are some brilliant wax products that will last for months, up to 6 months, dont cost the earth and save you so much time with no diminution of finish or extra elbow grease requirements. Yes, Ceramics will last longest but they are largely out of the scope of the DIYist and require a near-perfect finish before application, which is again out of the scope of this threads objectives. That's whether you pay fora pro to it or do it yourself, which is possible now with newer products like the Race Glaze 9H.

Things have moved on such that a little investment in a better wax and you'll simply not have to attend to the car as often. I've got a small fleet to look after and work on the principle of putting a price on my time and spending a little more on a better product.

LOL I love driving it ! I do love cleaning the car though i find it very therapeutic.

I have 5 kids though cleaning it every two weeks is the only peace i get, so i drive it 5 miles miles to work clean it and drive it the long way back

 

[BIRMA]

I've been using Pinnacle Souveran Carnuba wax for about 10 years now. It goes on like butter and comes off as quickly as it goes on and gives a real 'wet-look' finish.
It has always been expensive but the tub does a car about 20 times. Just recently its been selling for about £120 for the 8oz tub but today I found a seller on e-bay selling it for £78 so I obviously bought one for spare so to speak.
Just to add I won an award at a Jap Car Club meeting for the shiniest car it was my black RX7 and it really did give a superb finish, seems to work on any colour as far as I can see.

 

[reflexboy]

Great discussion here guys and from it I can see that there are many great products on the market. However, I think by your responses this is very much a matter of personal preference and what ‘works’ for each individual. Some people like this, some like that, etc.
In the end, as I’ve always been a bit of an Autoglym fan, I went for the new version of their HD wax. The Ultra High Definition Wax. Went on really easily with the new style applicator and came off once cured pretty easily too. I’m happy with the results and time will tell about its longevity.

 

[optimusprime]

reflexboy would like to know more about your trial polish .I used Autoglym for 35 years and i liked it .But the left over residue it left behind put me off , So i then stopped using it for that reason. And it was no good on its own .For best results you had to use the sealer to top it off .If the car was out side most of the time the protection would never lasted over 3 days . Lots of polishes are good .I am like most on this forum, and i love cleaning my car .
Polish of all types will make the bodywork shine, but protection from rain and uv sunlight they are very poor .The problem i find is , the more you wax a car bodywork you will find as soon as it rains, and the sun comes out, after it will bake the rain drops in to the paint . Then you have a white blob showing after you clean it .Now is there a polish that stops this problem with white blemishes ,the left over of rain water on the paint takes ages to go after this happens.

 

[AndyRC]

Although I have a white C63, i've tried both DoDo Juice & Bilt Hamber Double Speed Wax and find them both equally better than most wax's on the market, I don't think you'd go wrong with either of them. Having being an avid Autoglym HD user, along with most of their other products for many years, I'm now leaning towards Bilt Hamber for alot of my detailing items.

White is a hard colour to get that "Wet Finish" but both Bilt Hamber & DoDo Juice give a great finish. Bilt Hamber have been receiving some very good comments on various detailing web sites and recently won some awards..... Google is your friend : Car Magazine Awards - Bilt Hamber

Have you had the polishing machine out again Jim?